Magic Phone

[mechtech2]

I have seen part of the infomercial about 'Magic Phone'.

If you have a high speed internet connection, simply plug this little device into a USB port on your computer, and then your phone line into it.

$19.99 a YEAR for all calls - including long distance. Initially, $39.99 for the device and one year's service.
It could be a tremendous cost saver for many people and businesses.
I would not put all my eggs into one basket yet [like having no other phones], but it seems promising.

Any users out there? Downsides?

 

[moribundman]

Sounds like another VOIP service. I have been using Skype for a couple years.

 

[Kestas]

Do both parties need to be subscribed to this service and use their computers, or can the receiving party just use a standard phoneline and phone?

My girlfriend often calls family in Europe. This could be a big savings for her.

 

[moribundman]

I use SkypeOut to make worldwide calls at about 3 cents a minute (charge varies depending on the country). There is not monthly or annual fee to use SkypeOut. I buy 25 dollars worth of credit via PayPal every couple months. Only I have signed up with Skype. I call regular phones when making oversea calls. They can't call me via Skype -- and that's the way I like it.

 

[Oldmoparguy1]

Googled "Magic Phone". Got no relevent hits. I never, ever, ever, ever buy anything from an infomercial.

 

[drivewaytech]

Its called Magic Jack. I've never seen an infomercial for it, but however have been using it for about 3 months now. Got tired of the phone company [censored] so I dropped them and gave the Magic Jack a try. You can call anyone, and anyone can call you, they do not need to be a magic jack user. However, if someone overseas has the magic jack, the two of you can talk for free. The device has it's pros and cons. The computer always has to be on to make or receive calls. On a rare occasion when someone calls there is no sound, so they have to hang up and call back. I've never had a call drop in conversation or heard interference over the phone. This is with a cable modem with 3 computers surfing the internet through a router. It's around $40 for the first year and $19.95 per year there after. I do not know what kind of headache is involved to keep your current phone number because I opted to get a new one. I just plugged in the cordless phone what has 2 stations and all was good. Another con is that every time you reboot your computer, the Magic Jack program starts automatically, which takes about 3 minutes. But hey, for $20 bucks a year, I'm not complaining.

 

[mechtech2]

Sorry about the wrong name in the title post. I am not yet familiar with the device.

BTW, I saw Tide laundry soap advertised on TV, and it works great.